This creamy vegan cheese sauce is made with potatoes, carrots, and cashews for a smooth, savory sauce that works on pasta, broccoli, baked potatoes, and bowls. Make it in the Instant Pot or on the stovetop in 30 minutes.
Try it in my Instant Pot vegan mac and cheese, spoon it over broccoli and cauliflower potatoes, or serve it with crispy Yukon Gold potato wedges.
A Quick Look: Creamy Vegan Cheese Sauce
- 📝 Recipe Name: Creamy Vegan Cheese Sauce
- 🕒 Total Time: 30 minutes
- 👥 Servings: 4
- 🎯 Key Ingredients: Potatoes, carrots, cashews, plant-based milk
- 🌱 Dietary Info: Vegan, dairy-free, oil-free
- ✨ Best For: Pasta, potatoes, vegetables, bowls, and meal prep
- 💕 Why You’ll Love It: Smooth, savory, and made with simple ingredients in about 30 minutes
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This sauce has been part of my meal-prep rotation for years. I use it for baked vegan mac and cheese, spoon it over potatoes, vegetables, and lentil meatloaf, and swirl it into one pot vegan chili.
I make it with and without nutritional yeast, but I usually prefer the flavor without it. My kids like it with it, so I switch it up depending on who I’m cooking for.
It’s a recipe I always come back to because the ingredients are simple, the Instant Pot does most of the work, and I can use the sauce in several different meals throughout the week.
Why This Recipe Works
- Creamy without dairy or oil: Potatoes, carrots, and cashews create the smooth base without butter, flour, or added oil.
- No soaking required: The cashews cook with the vegetables, so they soften enough to blend smoothly.
- Two cooking methods: Make the sauce in the Instant Pot or use the stovetop instructions.
- Savory flavor: Vegan bouillon adds depth to the mild potato, carrot, and cashew base.
Looking for more dairy-free cheese ideas? Try my vegan nacho cheese sauce, vegan provolone cheese sauce, or homemade almond parmesan cheese next.
Ingredients
Here's what you'll need for this vegan cheese sauce recipe:
- Yellow potatoes: Create the creamy base. I usually use Yukon Gold potatoes and leave the skins on. Russet potatoes also work, but I would peel them first.
- Carrot: Adds color and a slight sweetness.
- Raw cashews: Give the sauce richness. For a nut-free option, use white beans or steamed cauliflower.
- Vegan bouillon: Adds the savory flavor. Substitute 1½ cups low-sodium vegetable broth for the water and bouillon.
- Plant-based milk: Use an unsweetened, unflavored variety such as oat, soy, almond, or cashew milk.
Find the complete list of ingredients and measurements in the recipe card below.
Tested Tips
- Keep all the cooking liquid. Transfer everything from the Instant Pot or saucepan to the blender. The liquid is part of the sauce.
- Use a high-speed blender when possible. It gives the potatoes, cashews, and vegetables the smoothest consistency.
- Add the salt after cooking. Bouillon cubes and vegetable broth vary in sodium, so blend the sauce with the salt, taste, and adjust if needed.
- No need to soak the cashews. The cashews cook right along with the vegetables, so you can skip the soaking step and still get a smooth, creamy sauce.
Drizzle this quick vegan cheese sauce over air fryer sweet potato wedges or these vegan sweet potato chili fries.
How to Make Vegan Cheese Sauce
Making vegan cheese sauce is simple: cook the potatoes, carrot, onion, garlic, and cashews until soft, then blend everything with plant-based milk and the remaining seasonings.
Add Ingredients to an Instant Pot
Add potatoes, carrot, onion, garlic, cashews, water, bouillon cube, and all spices, except salt, pepper, milk, and nutritional yeast.
Pressure Cook
Seal the lid and cook on high pressure for 6 minutes. Then let the pressure release naturally for 10 minutes. Transfer everything, including the cooking liquid, to a blender.
Add Remaining Ingredients & Blend
Add the plant-based milk, salt, black pepper, and nutritional yeast, if using. Blend until completely smooth.
Adjust to Taste & Serve
Give your cheese sauce a taste and adjust to your preference.
Try this cheese sauce spread over English muffin pizzas or spooned onto homemade soy burgers.
Stovetop Method
- Add the potatoes, carrot, onion, garlic, cashews, water, bouillon cube, onion powder, garlic powder, paprika, and turmeric to a medium saucepan.
- Bring the mixture to a boil, reduce the heat, and simmer for 12–15 minutes, until the potatoes, carrot, and cashews are soft.
- Transfer everything to a blender. Add the plant-based milk, salt, black pepper, and nutritional yeast, if using. Blend until smooth, then taste and adjust.
For more ways to add flavor to simple meals, browse my collection of vegan sauce ideas for bowls, pasta, vegetables, and more.
Make It Your Way
- Make it spicier: Blend in pickled jalapeños, cayenne, or a splash of hot sauce.
- Add more tang: Start with a small squeeze of lemon juice or ½ teaspoon Dijon mustard.
Dairy-free cheese sauce is super versatile. Try it in vegan taco dip, or drizzled over crispy potato tacos or easy refried black beans next.
How to Use Vegan Cheese Sauce
Use it like you would any cheese sauce:
- Drizzle on Mexican rice bowls, breakfast burritos, or bean and rice tacos.
- Swirl into vegan 3 bean chili, vegan enchilada soup, or vegan slow cooker black bean soup for richness and depth.
- Drizzle it over smothered bean and rice burritos.
Storage & Meal Prep
- Refrigerate: Store the sauce in an airtight container for up to 4 days.
- Reheat: Warm it gently on the stovetop or in short microwave intervals. Add plant-based milk or water if it has thickened.
- Meal prep: Portion the sauce into smaller containers so you can reheat only what you need.
The Instant Pot is such a game-changer for vegan meal prep. If you batch as much as I do, be sure to try my Instant Pot chickpeas (no soak) and my super-easy Instant Pot refried beans recipe.
Vegan Cheese Sauce FAQs
Yes. White beans or steamed cauliflower can replace the cashews. The sauce will be a little less rich. Add the plant-based milk gradually while blending so you can control the consistency.
Use an unsweetened, unflavored plant-based milk. Oat and cashew milk give the sauce a particularly creamy consistency, but soy and almond milk also work.
This version is made with potatoes, carrot, onion, garlic, cashews, vegan bouillon, seasonings, and plant-based milk. The cooked vegetables and cashews blend together to create a creamy sauce without dairy, flour, or added oil.
Yes. Simmer the vegetables, cashews, water, bouillon, and seasonings on the stovetop for 12–15 minutes, then blend with the plant-based milk, salt, black pepper, and nutritional yeast, if using.
Did you try this recipe? Let me know what you thought by leaving a comment below and sharing it on Instagram, Facebook, & Pinterest! 💛
📖 Recipe
Creamy Vegan Cheese Sauce
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Ingredients
- 2 medium yellow or Yukon Gold potatoes, scrubbed and roughly chopped, no need to peel
- ½ cup carrot, roughly chopped, about 1 medium, 6–7-inch carrot
- ⅔ cup onion, roughly chopped, about ⅔ of a medium onion
- 3 cloves garlic, peeled
- ½ cup raw cashews, unsalted and unroasted
- 1½ cups water
- 1 vegan bouillon cube
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon paprika
- ¼ teaspoon turmeric
- ½ cup plant-based milk, unsweetened and unflavored
- 1 teaspoon sea salt, or to taste
- 20 turns black pepper
- 2 teaspoons nutritional yeast, optional
Instructions
Instant Pot Instructions
- Add the potatoes, carrot, onion, garlic, cashews, water, bouillon cube, onion powder, garlic powder, paprika, and turmeric to the Instant Pot.
- Secure the lid and cook on High Pressure for 6 minutes.
- Allow a 10-minute natural release, then carefully release any remaining pressure.
- Transfer the entire mixture, including the cooking liquid, to a blender.
- Add the plant-based milk, salt, black pepper, and nutritional yeast, if using.
- Blend until completely smooth. Taste and adjust the salt or thickness before serving.
Stovetop Instructions
- Add the potatoes, carrot, onion, garlic, cashews, water, bouillon cube, onion powder, garlic powder, paprika, and turmeric to a medium saucepan.
- Bring to a boil, reduce the heat, and simmer for 12–15 minutes, until the potatoes, carrot, and cashews are soft.
- Transfer the entire mixture to a blender.
- Add the plant-based milk, salt, black pepper, and nutritional yeast, if using.
- Blend until smooth. Taste and adjust the salt or thickness as needed.
Video
Notes
- Vegetable broth option: Replace the 1½ cups water and bouillon cube with 1½ cups low-sodium vegetable broth. Choose an oil-free broth if you want to keep the sauce oil-free.
- Salt: Bouillon and broth vary in sodium. Start with less salt and adjust after blending.
- Thinner sauce: Blend in additional plant-based milk or water, one splash at a time.
- Nut-free option: Replace the cashews with white beans or steamed cauliflower. The sauce will be less rich.
Nutrition
Julie Gaeta is a plant-based recipe creator, certified Integrative Nutrition Health Coach, and mom of nine who's been plant-based for over 20 years. She's cooked approximately 4,382 pots of beans and can't vacation without her juicer and pasta pot. Her work has been featured in HuffPost, Yahoo, YourTango, and other major outlets. She helps others simplify wellness and feel good again through her blog, coaching, and weekly newsletter.
Julie Gaeta says
This one’s a meal prep staple for me. I’ve made it more times than I can count, and it never gets old. Super creamy, such a good flavor, and works on just about everything. Definitely a must-try!
Tia W says
Hello mate great blog
Julie Gaeta says
So happy to hear you like it. Thanks so much! 😊